Arsenal Serge to the Top.

Who would have guessed that not so long ago this game would have been thought of as one for the purists? Not me. But that was how it was billed and rightly so as Swansea are a fine footballing team, this generous complement only works, of course, because Arsenal are an even better footballing team.

That said, we had to go through the ringer to prove it because that was one of the most nail biting games I have had to suffer in a while, but win we did, and three valuable points were brought back to North London and if that wasn’t good enough, results around us couldn’t have gone better if we had fixed them the night before: Manu and City losing, spuds and chavs drawing, what, somebody pinch me?

Onto the game, we were poor, well more precisely the attacking part of our game in the first half was poor; Swansea looked far more threatening going forward and I will stick my neck out and say that they had better quality attackers than we did. Michu, Dyer and Routledge are better than Giroud, Wilshere and Gnabry. Fortunately our defensive unit was in superb form and dealt with everything that Swansea threw at us.

We were getting nowhere fast, gone were those beautiful passes by Ozil into space for players to run onto when he first arrived; the kind he played week in and week out to Ronaldo at Real, these gems had to be abandoned as none of our attackers were capable of making the runs or in Giroud’s case, capable of controlling the ball well enough, this forced Ozil to have to try and beat more men than I am sure he would have liked which often led to him being tackled and losing possession. Some have criticised him, not realising, in my opinion, that circumstances forced him to play that way.

And then, just before half time, it happened, like a shaft of bright light shining through a thundery sky, Gnabry, clearly fed up being on the wing, answered the question of where he plays by making a powerful run through the middle, passing at least three men before laying of a perfect ball for Giroud — who wasted it. This was it, Gnabry had arrived, he is not a winger he is an Aaron Ramsey; people used to refer to this kind of player as a Steven Gerrard but that seems soooo passé now.

Gnabry started the second half with a new found confidence; he never got chastised for moving into the middle so he tried it again a few times and it worked, he also impressively started tracking back and then to make his day just about as perfect as it could get he scored his first goal for the Good Guys. It was pretty much the only way we were going to score: a slow build up made up of accurate passes, enabling us to find a way around the Swansea defence to set up someone with a goal scoring chance; on this occasion it fell to the young German .

Serge took his chance well. With a goal to the good it forced Swansea to take more risks in their pursuit of equalising which in turn gave us a lot more space and the possibility of hitting them on the break, which is exactly what we did. Within five minutes of going ahead we had a golden opportunity to score again through Ozil, unfortunately he missed but that just set the scene for Ramsey to save the day again. I have run out of meaningful superlatives and it isn’t even Christmas. The man is a goal scoring machine. Brilliant, absolutely brilliant.

The game looked like it was just going to peter out with Arsenal cruising to the finishing line but a well worked goal from Swansea put pay to that, it was up off the sofa, pacing in front of the telly time.

We got there of course and with hind sight I can now see how well Wenger managed to deploy his limited resources. Wilshere and Gnabry are not wingers and that is why I was so bold above to suggest that Swansea had a better quality attack. But needs must as they say; would this game have been the same with a fit Arteta, Cazorla and Walcott available? No it wouldn’t — we would have crushed them.

Lastly, I would like to show some respect where respect is due: after the Aston Villa opening game debacle, when many Arsenal supporters including some on this site where still questioning such things as the harmony between the management and the board; Wenger’s ability or inability to sign big money players and the most hennas, “spud envy” pointing far too respectfully at all the new signings being made in N17. Well, while this sea of excrement was going on one loyal blogger on this site stood firm and put his money where his mouth was and bet that Arsenal would be top of the League on October 1st.

26 May 1989…….I salute you.

Because we are top of the league, say we are top of the league.

Quick player ratings.

Szczesny: top game, plucked everything out of the air and did well when needed to get down. There was an incident in the first half but look at the back pass and you will see who is really to blame. 8

Sagna: Wenger must have promised him big things as he is playing better than he ever has. 8

Mertesacker: So, so good, so calm, so commanding I really want to give him the MOTM but for their goal. 8

Koscielny: Another solid display from the other half of our amazing centre-back pairing 8

Gibbs: disciplined performance from England’s future LB. 8

Ramsey: I can’t think of anything else to say, MOTM. 10

Flamini: hands up all those who thought he would be able to keep Arteta out of the starting line up when he was re-signed? Not me. He is getting better and better every week. 8

Wilshere: playing wide left is obviously not ideal but he did what he could. 7

Gnabry: I thought he was a waste of space, it was if Arsenal were playing with a man short – and then he made that run. Things will never be the same. 7

Giroud: a difficult day for Ollie, his inability to hold the ball and beat a man will lead to a “Super Quality” signing coming in and ultimately taking his place. 7

Ozil. The honeymoon period is still in full swing. I just can’t wait until Cazorla returns. 7

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There is a resilience about Arsenal (starting with the game at Bayern Munich ) which we haven’t had for years.
So many ignorant Arsenal fans were critical of Gnabry after the West Brom game, quite unbelievable. This boy, just turned 18 worked his socks off for 120 mins and showed some quality. His game was not perfect but in 3 games for Arsenal he has put in more defensive work than Theo has in 7 years.
With Caorla returning to fitness, Ozil will need to get his skates on to keep his place. Just decorating the games at the moment.

I agree with your ratings LB except for Giroud who deserves an 8 at least ffor his tireless work and composure when laying the ball off and not being selfish but playing with others as a unit.

3 games in a week and even allowing for a much changed team at WBA and knowing that we could go top before the game started,i was surprised yet pleased how fit the lads looked right up to the final whistle. This is just a positive sign as the result itself.

I agree Gnabry (with a silent G) is by nature a central midfielder. I noted that in his post match interview, Ramsey was asked what he attributed his improved form to and he said that last season he was played all over the place (by necessity) and that his preferred position was in the centre. I can see Cazorla being deployed wide left when fit, and Gnabry, the Ox and the Pod all being rotated in wide positions.

A note of caution – although I am responsible for the not-so-subtle banner at the top of the page, I do think it is far too early to get excited and the lack of depth in some areas could yet weaken our team selection in certain competitions.

A win on Tuesday and hopefully 3 points at home against Marseilles will pretty much be enough to guarantee our passage through to the knock out stages of the CL.

I would have given him an 8 as well, he played his part in the fine defensive display.

Rizal’s comment made me laugh, “a so, so review”, could have been worse I suppose he could have said it was crap. lol

Kelsey

I always find it tricky reviewing Giroud, I agree that his hard work is note worthy; in fact, I would go as far as to say he works harder and is more committed than any other player in the team but then we get to his control. His flicks are all well and good but I can’t stop myself from wondering what it would be like if we had someone who could control the ball and play it to a runner like Walcott for example.

Close control is everything, Ozil has it in spades but he needs someone of a similar standard to play with.

Some of you may have realised I’ve been having a bit of strife with my stats widgets. The main problem has been that I inadvertently deleted all last seasons figures and have had to research them again – thanks to TT for his help on the ‘Comparison of Fixtures’ table.

The only one that is missing now, and the one that would be the most pleasing to see is the ‘League position compared to 2012/12.

Does anyone have a list of our league position last season after every round of games please?

I look at a player who was in the French Second Division and now in only the beginning of his second season. Wearing the number 9 shirt (or whatever it is) always carries a huge expectation. The more I see of him I wouldn’t label him as an authordox CF and that in itself is a bonus as it suits our style of play.

Rasp

German is my second language :) Gnarby has had a lot of people debating how one pronounces his name.

In German when the G is at the beginning of a word it is a hard G and when it is the last letter of a word it is a soft G

LB
Nice one there, yesterday match was superb and i was particularly impress by Gnabry defence ability, d guy threw himself into anything in white that came his way yesterday. He had to dived to block a thunder off d boot of michu @ d edge of our box towards d end of first half.
(NB) why has match statistics disappear from this blog? Like most completed passes, shot on target, ball possession e.t.c thats one of the effizy that make dis blog a class. Revert or re-introduce it pls. From Nigeria

Well, what can I say? I blush at LB’s words! That said, I can’t quite call in on my wager yet, as I actually said post-Villa that we would be top at the end of October (which LB correctly spotted had been carefully chosen as falling at the end of an opening run of winnable games, including against the Spuds). I remain optimistic that I’ll be collecting the cash though…..

Nice report on the game yesterday. It’s the solidity and solidarity of the team that impresses – the creative stuff only comes occasionally right now, but then that it the unit of the team that has been most affected by the injury crisis. Once the trio of Walcott, Cazorla and Podolski are available again, we can expect to see more of the great stuff. But seeing the maturity and confidence of our defensive unit, and the supporting play from those who play further forward, just gives us so much confidence, there is an air of relaxation that means we know we can soak up the pressure and wait for our strong period. We seem to be built on the Mertesacker-Koscielny partnership, which looked as good yesterday as it has been all season.

It was great to see Gnabry get his goal – it’s the moment he was blooded into the senior squad, and it’ll help him develop. (BTW, Kelsey, rightly or wrongly, the German media types definitely pronounce it “Nabry”.)

I’m really looking forward to the Napoli game but we have to be realistic, it will be our hardest game so far. With the group we’ve got, home wins will be as hard to achieve as away wins.

Continuity in management,coaching, player staff, and the easing of financial constraints is creating an environment were consistency and growth are allowed to flourish and is pushing us forward, and fast.

Winning the title this year was never a pipe dream, we are a contender.

More importantly is the progression going into future seasons. We don’t just want to win the league and fade, we want to retain it and hence build a new dynasty equal to or even surpassing the great sides of the thirties.

With Arsene Wenger at the helm we have every chance of building a side that will make the “Ghosts Stir”.

I am delighted for Arsene, but also for all Arsenal fans, critics or not, that we will soon be enjoying a fantastic new era.

On a personal note I am happy for myself. I have suffered mental anguish at the way Arsene has been treated the last few years.

Things came to a head last year when completing my annual Tax Return I put through a £5,000 expense claim for “Arsene Anguish” as a result of been upset at work after blogging.

I soon had a tax Inspector on my case. The kind of man you see walk into a late night Tesco and then leave the establishment empty handed.

He argued that my “Arsene Anguish” was not wholly and exclusively a business expense but that the torment I felt was more of a personal nature.

My counter to this was that I normally blog when in the office since at home I spend most of the time hiding from my wife.

Thanks chas, I’ve followed Shard’s link above and managed to compile a list. Its difficult because some teams get behind with their games when playing in other competitions, but it’ll do as a comparison.

It seems no matter how many stats I put up, there is always someone asking for something extra :roll:

I managed to get some sleep last night despite all the celebrations – will be worse tonight cos the team are having their homecoming so I might as well go along for a look.

Limerick did win the Munster final though earlier in the year and we got to invade the pitch (and I’m in the video somewhere doing a runner onto the field ha ha) – nice thing about GAA that we can do that, great release for the happiness.

I like your reports LB. Always thorough but with a clear point of view (and always at least one cheeky opinion that’s bound to get some response, e.g. today’s comment about Ollie’s touch :) )

I loved this: “This was it, Gnabry had arrived, he is not a winger he is an Aaron Ramsey; people used to refer to this kind of player as a Steven Gerrard but that seems soooo passé now.”

And so to Ollie’s touch (or lack of it). His touch was excellent (check out the two touches he took before shooting in that chance he had at the end of the first half). It’s his finishing that needs to pep up! I remain very impressed by the way he’s leading the line, particularly without – as you point out – any other orthodox forwards on the pitch.

This year was a good one particularly in the hurling because the Kilkenny/Tipperary monopoly was broken, they have won it between themselves for the last 8 years – mostly Kilkenny.

They got knocked out early on – Limerick won the Munster title for the first time in 17 years, Dublin won the Leinster final for the first time since the 60s I think. They have changed the system so there is a “back door” where you can take a longer route to the All-Ireland and that is how Clare won it – their first time since the 90s. Two cracking games for the final that got an 83,000 sell-out on both days.

The underage hurling games got good crowds as well because there was such a good vibe around about the game this summer.

The football wasn’t as exciting – Dublin won it and Kerry, Tyrone etc was still there till near the end. Heart break for Mayo though, lost 3 out of the last 4 finals.

The GAA are pricing themselves out of it though, won’t even get into a league game (people only really care about the knock out championship) for less than €20 which is madness. Remember a few years back you’d get in for a €5.

Also the tickets for the All-Ireland were either €50 for standing or €80 for seated – not much when compared to watching the Arsenal every week I know but we’re not paying anyone €250k a week to play, the players are free as are most other things. Not exactly like the GAA are pumping it all back into the local clubs either – only for JP McManus there wouldn’t be sport in Limerick apart from rugby, that man keeps us going especially the GAA and soccer (football :P )

Speaking of the All-Ireland and that, big celebrations on in town from 6 so going to head in now for a few pints and soak up the atmosphere cos I might be waiting a long time for Limerick to win … and I’ve to meet a Clare man with my Dortmund ticket :)

RL – The numbers in GAA clubs are still massive. People watch the Premier League and all that but in terms of playing numbers nothing comes close to GAA – huge for boys, girls, men and women. Very close knit community vibe in Ireland and GAA is the best way to express it. Club games can get quite tasty as well with a bit of an edge to them – like a nasty edge. I love the GAA – going to it more than watching it on tv.

Interesting that a few of the Manc fans are pointing to the fact that Moist fired all of Fergie’s coaching staff and brought with him the team from Everton – so hardly anyone in the coaching team at ManUre has the experience of winning things.

It seems to have been a really wreckless move on Moist’s part – throwing away all that experience and know-how.

I would guess he felt threatened by them and wanted to bring in people who have been (and would be) beholden to him.

I enjoyed the first half of the game. It was a little more ‘tactical’ I suppose, and Swansea controlled possession better than we did, but it was still interesting. I disagree about Ozil though. He wasn’t terrible or anything, and he probably does need time to adjust to the league and his teammates, but he wasn’t really good yesterday. It will be fantastic to see him link up with Cazorla, and Podolski too.

I was very impressed by Gnabry, and Wenger just be given credit for believing in him. Not many managers would do that, despite the injuries to the squad. Ramsey another example of course, and rightly awarded Man of the match. Flamini is another who I thought did well. Sagna too, although I thought he was to blame for the Swansea goal. Gibbs was fantastic, as was szczesny apart from the moment where he got lucky that the lineman made the right call.

Robson yesterday suggested it would be a different game if Rangel played, which ignores our injuries. Would any other team cope as well as we’ve done? Robson was also pushing his story of how Bould and Wenger don’t get along. I think he needs a dose of what sniffer received yesterday. :)

On to Napoli, and I hope we win. Our fixture pileup in the weeks to come means we need points early in the group stage. It won’t be easy though. Napoli looked good in the Emirates Cup.

Afternoon all, as I just read Rockys comments I have something to add about Gollum and sacking the back room staff. SAF’s successes were helped as much by his coaches as they were by him himself, don’t get me wrong he was a great motivator, this won them titles, the coaches he employed also helped, there was very often a dip when key men like McLaren or Querioz left. I have read towards the end of his career he spent most time in his office with the panoramic view of Cartington rather than on the training pitch.

Moyes is more in the Wenger mould coaching and managing…maybe Phelans role would have been too conflicting with Moyes of he had stayed.

My thoughts on our current shape and performances are that we are starting to play a bit like the teams of old, not necessarily dominating possession and pass pass pass, rather making the most of the possession when we do get it, moving it quickly and productively, certainly evidenced by the goals yesterday.

Chas, I’m sure I’m not the only one on here that would make room in any squad for “passengers” that put in a shift like that……….people amaze me sometimes with what they take from matches/performances. I really think the (excellent, as usual) match report summed up Ozils performance perfectly & why it was a bit different (but still effective) than we would usually see from our German maestro.

Was thinking about the lucky yellow away kit….and how fans of my generation see it as a return to a classic cour.

The 30’s teams wore white and black away from home sometimes white and blue! 1950 was the first yellow change kit and followed in 1952 but only for the FA Cup finals. We didn’t have a regular yellow change kit until 1969

LB
“one loyal blogger on this site stood firm and put his money where his mouth was”
Ha! Really? Just the one? Sure about that? Wanna bet? (No, bad idea LB :-) )
Before you go around willy nilly insulting all and sundry, get a load of this: My max bet each yr is £10 on the National, and same amount on World Cup every four years.

This year was different as a voice within was screeming “Get a bet on Didit, you utter spanner, this is our year.”

Picture the facts. August 29. Signed so far: Sanogo. PL Games: won one, lost one. Didit skips into William Hills Boutique and slaps a whopping £100 on Arsenal to win the title at 14-1.
Odds now: 4-1.
Ps Have proof. Can photo and Rasp can stick it up as an omen in place of his Assist Digit, but next to The Swingometer :-)

By the way LB, I think your reports are superb. Hope you enjoyed The Worlds, you mentioned. Who won?

The Worlds were a wash out for team GB, it rained all day and they gave up one by one before throwing in the towel completely.

It wasn’t a bad finish fought out between Italy, Spain and Portugal who got the win in the end. They will wear the prestigious Rainbow coloured jersey in all events next year including the Tour de France.

GiE – re your response yesterday, just a week ago I had news on the ‘protection’ that was reqired by Mr Morgan follwing that scandalous article. apparently he has had to cal in a few favours and show some good grace to pour some oil on those troubled waters.

putting bets even now with slashed odds could be rewarding, right? Too bad, one can’t do betting in sports over here in States (maybe there are some underhanded betting in black-market but nothing I know of) or I would’ve put a cheeky $50 bet on Arsenal for champions. Doesn’t mean we, the distant followers, have any less Arsenal in our blood though. Just saying :P

Rocky,
I’d not heard anything by Jake Bugg until last night, so it definitely wasn’t me who put up Lightning Bolt. It was this cover that got me listening. He’s a local Nottingham lad so I’d heard a lot about him.

It’s a weird thing but I look at Arteta, Podolski and Mertesacker and think….”they’re getting on a bit” yet they are all younger than me. I think of PV4 and Henry as some kind of pensioner yet we are the same age. Strange thing football fandom.